I have been a grandfather’s boy all my life. Daddy, as I fondly call him, has been my biggest inspiration to become a well-read person. Thanks to him, I have learned to see books as the drivers of individual growth.
For Daddy, reading has always been a solace. Back in the day, I would make it impossible for him to have a quiet read, doing everything it took to grab his attention. I had lots of toys to play with in my playroom and a television to watch cartoons on, but nothing could beat the joy of annoying Daddy. I would almost always end up with Daddy in his study, surrounded by all those book-crammed shelves.
On one such day, when I had too much energy and too few things to burn it on, I drew a book out of one of the shelves and sat down to read it. It was Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles. Now, I must say, the book was rather heavy, both literally and figuratively, for a ten-year-old boy. This made me feel all the more proud when, a month later, I was done reading it. It felt like I was following in my grandpa’s footsteps, and honestly, that felt great.
I started reading other books from his shelf, more out of the desire to impress him than any real interest in reading. I wanted him to think that I was just like him, and for others to think of me as someone smart. Grandpa and I would often sit together to discuss the stories that we both read. It was then that I realized that each story dealt with a different subject; each story came with different characters. I felt that books offered more scope for freedom and creativity than, say, movies. Interestingly, the more I read, the more I understood why Daddy was such a big fan of fiction.
You see, not everyone can be a musafir, or a traveler. Sometimes all one needs to do is grab a book and let it transport them to new, unexpected realms.
A NOTE TO OUR READERS
If you too are an Indian reader with a story to tell, we are all ears. Getting your story published on Ameya is pretty straightforward, actually. Just click on the button below, fill in the applicable fields and start typing. Once you are done, hit ‘submit’. If you don’t quite fancy the idea of filling random contact forms on the Internet, relax – we’ve got all bases covered! You can simply email your story to us at support@booksameya.in. Once we’ve received your story, our team will get in touch with you and apprise you of its publishing status. Yes, it’s that simple!